Okay, so these are the trees I've been calling honey locusts. They're all up and down our streets around here. They're weird. But they are fascinating too.
For example, the growth on this one twig is over two feet long! The green stem of the new growth actually starts under the bunch of leaves on the left!
And look at the perfectly alternate arrangement of the compound leaves.
Left then right. Right then left. Cool!
And on another honey locust a few blocks away, I found a bug party.
Ew. I was looking at the leaves and spotted this mass of tiny black bugs. There were also a few ants crawling around on top of these smaller bugs. Are these maybe the aphids that I read about?
But what I never find on any of these honey locusts are flowers or fruit. Why not? If they are all male trees, they would have had some pollen-producing flowers. If they are female trees, they would be growing some fruit. The honey locusts did develop their leaves very late, so maybe they just haven't gotten to the flowers and fruit stage yet. I did, however, spot a couple of trees on another side of the street that I thought were also honey locusts and they are covered with flower/fruit clusters.
Is this also a honey locust? Is it ahead of the others? Is it a female tree? Or is it something else entirely? The brown things hanging down appear to be dried up flowers. Maybe it's a male tree? But the white parts left behind look like female parts where the fruit would begin to grow.
Wait, are those leaves really the same leaves as the honey locusts above? I'm so confused now! I'm no longer sure if these trees are all the same or are honey locusts at all. While I was looking for clues, my daughter decided that whatever they are, their fallen branches make for fabulous royal scepters.
All hail, queen of the trees! On her way to the playground.
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